Writing for the studentBMJ

New contributors with new ideas are always welcome

The studentBMJ was originally intended to be a forum for debate. Although we have certainly achieved that, many students are failing to use the great opportunity they have through this publication to voice their opinion. We would love to hear from enthusiastic writers, and we are always looking for new authors for the Life, Education, and Personal View sections of the magazine. You do not have to have had anything published before to get material in the journal. If it's interesting, fresh, and original, we'd like to read it, even if you have never thought of putting pen to paper before.

Once you submit an article, we discuss it at a studentBMJ editorial meeting. These monthly meetings involve input from our national and international medical student advisers, who collectively decide whether the article should be published or rejected. There is no limit to how many articles we can accept, and if we reject the piece, we will let you know the reasons so that you can alter and resubmit it if you wish.

If your article is accepted for publication, not only will it be read by thousands of subscribing medical students around the world, but you will also receive an author's fee. The amount is dependent on the article type, but in general we pay \P100 for Life, Education and Personal View articles.

We often get asked the question, "What should I write about?" The best thing about our student contributions is the diversity of ideas and opinion they bring to the journal. Telling you what to write would mean losing this diversity. Of course we are always more than willing to offer advice about particular ideas that you might have.

If you want an idea of the range of articles we accept, take a look at previous editions of the journal (www.studentbmj.com). You will quickly realise your 5000 word project on stenosis of the renal artery is not going to be published. We also have an extensive guide on our website at www.studentbmj.com/writing.

If you have an idea you think could make a great article, get writing. We will acknowledge receipt of your article within seven days and let you know when you'll be informed of the editorial committee's decision. Please bear in mind we only accept articles submitted in electronic format; either on disc or by email to studenteditor@bmj.com

If you have any questions or want to discuss any ideas, phone the studentBMJ on 020 7383 6118. If you've never thought about being published, this could be an opportunity to change your mind. You could have an article printed in the world's only journal published specifically for medical students, and the worst possible outcome is you could receive some helpful pointers on your writing. For the journal to continue to thrive we need to continue receiving your articles, ideas and criticisms. If in doubt, why not try George Orwell's useful rules for writing:

1. Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say something outright barbarous.

As one of the greatest political writers Britain has ever known, they certainly didn't harm Orwell's career. We look forward to hearing from you.

Jason O'Neale Roach, editor, studentBMJ

Siân Knight, third year medical student, Nottingham University, Nottingham NG7 2UH


studentBMJ 2000;08:131-174 May ISSN 0966-6494